The present invention relates to personal headlights, and more particularly, to an illumination assembly with a clamp for mounting on a head-mounted personal utility device, such as on caps, eyeglasses, face shields, surgical loupes and the like.
Personal headlights have their origin in providing light for miners and cave explorers. Typically, these headlights attach to the front of a helmet or to a relatively heavy headband. In order to insure that the headlight is secure, in addition to the band that goes around the head, a second band is usually required to extend across the crown of the head and be attached to the headband. The miner""s type headlight is typically an incandescent or flourescent lamp that is powered by a battery supported by the headband, or in some cases by a battery on the belt of the user.
From this beginning, other types of personal headlights have evolved, such as those worn by surgeons, and other medical or dental professionals. The state of the art in these surgical and other medical type headlights is now very advanced. In the most popular form, a fiber optic light guide is used to bring the light energy from a remote unit to the headlight. However, this means that the light, and thus the head of the user, is tethered to the light guide, providing some restriction of movement. This restriction, and the relatively heavy nature of the device, as well as the cost, is quite acceptable in the surgical and like environments. However, when it comes to the personal, more casual use, such as from running or jogging to reading a book to light maintenance duties around the house, a headlight that is more adapted to be mounted on personal head gear, and is light in weight and low in cost, is needed.
In my prior copending U.S. Design patent application, Ser. No. 29/153,277, entitled Cap Mounted Headlight, now U.S. Pat. D464750, issued Oct. 22, 2002, I have disclosed and claimed such a personal headlight with a clamp for attaching to the bill of a standard baseball cap. Thus, this headlight has been successful in partially filling this need, as set forth above. While this headlight has been very successful in the market, it will be realized that its use has been restricted to those situations where wearing a cap is desired or appropriate. Also, it is somewhat limited even when used on a cap, since the adjustment that is available is about a single horizontal pivot, i.e. the adjustment is for allowing a pivoting up and down movement. Furthermore, due to the necessity to have a substantially horizontal mounting place, such as on the bill of the cap, it is now realized that essentially the only type of conventional head mounted utility device, that can easily be used for receiving the clamp, is the baseball cap.
Having a light per se mounted on a cap is known. For example, the patent to Chien 5,485,358 shows a baseball type cap having light emitting diodes [LEDs] positioned on the back and side of the cap as a novelty, such as for providing an xe2x80x9ceye-catching light show for use in night time activities.xe2x80x9d As is apparent, such an arrangement, has no utility for providing a light beam that can be directed toward substantially all frontal objects for viewing those objects. Also, there is no provision for allowing illumination, regardless of the plane of orientation, since the attachment in the ""358 patent is not subject to any adjustment.
Similarly, there are examples of the use of illumination systems for the medical and dental professions, as mentioned above, that utilize clamps to be attached to utility devices carried by the head of the user. The Caplan et al U.S. Pat. No. 5,667,291 shows a fiber optic light guide that is mounted on a clamp and provided with a single horizontal pivot adjustment to direct the light emitting end of the light guide to the viewing or work area. In this ""291 patent the utility device for mounting the light is taught as the viewing glasses/binoculars. The requirement for tethering the user to the remote light source, and electrical power, can be acceptable to some in this environment, but for casual uses, as I have contemplated, such a restriction is unacceptable.
In view of the above state of the art, it would be desirable to provide a self-contained illumination assembly that takes care of the above described shortcomings. The assembly is required to be simple and low in cost, but very functional in that it can be used for virtually any casual lighting situation, including sports, reading, sewing, light maintenance work and similar things. A feature that would characterize the assembly is a universal mount on a clamp for the light source. The clamp must attach to virtually any head gear, or other personal utility device. The light source should properly direct its light beam regardless of the plane of orientation of the head gear or utility device. Furthermore, having a secondary adjustment is contemplated for even greater range of frontal illumination.
It is in view of this background, and these objectives that are set forth, the present invention succeeds in providing an illumination assembly that finds wide spread application in the field of casual use, and also light work use. A clamp provides for attachment to any one of several utility devices that are commonly adapted for mounting on the head of a user, such as head gear, including the bill of a cap, eyeglasses, goggles, a face shield and a variety of head bands, as well as surgical and dental eye wear, or the like, including loupes and binoculars. The clamp is characterized by the ability to conveniently mount on any one of these utility devices and others, in any of the X, Y and Z planes or modes, by virtue of a choice of two unique universal mounts of the light source. As a result, the light can easily be directed properly for viewing. The objective of frontal viewing is important since the illumination assembly of the present invention is intended for useful, rather than for a novelty purpose. A battery that is a part of the assembly serves to power the light source, and therefore make the assembly self-contained, and thus not subject to the restriction of a tether.
Preferably, the universal mount takes the form of either a pair of pivot connections or a ball and socket mechanism. In the first embodiment, the first pivot connection is positioned vertically between the light source and the depending support arm. The second or horizontal pivot connection thus extends at substantially 90 degrees and connects two sections of the support arm that is attached to the base of the clamp. Both connections work in concert for universal adjustment of the light source, and each exhibits sufficient frictional engagement to hold the light source in position after so being manually adjusted.
In a second embodiment, a socket is carried by the base of the clamp and a mating ball is carried on the light source, or in the broader sense, vice-versa. The ball is preferably spherical and has sufficient frictional holding force to maintain its adjustment in the socket for properly directing the beam of light once it is released from manual adjusting engagement. As a result of this feature, or the corresponding feature having the pair of pivot connections, the light source can be moved around in a full range of movement, both in an up and down sense, as well as with respect to side to side.
With respect to the ball and socket or second embodiment, the pivot connection on the depending arm can be used for secondary and extended adjustment. This connection works in concert with the universal ball and socket adjusting movement. In both embodiments, the pivot connection comprises a horizontal pivot pin and it is designed to have an extended range of up and down adjustment of the light source.
The specific ball and socket mechanism that is provided to establish the second embodiment, includes a spherical ball and a mating spherical socket. There is one or more splits in the socket along its lines of curvature to provide for curved fingers for gripping the ball. An elastic O-ring is stretched around the outer periphery socket, pressing fingers inwardly to assure that the designed frictional holding force is maintained.
The light source preferably utilizes a light emitting diode [LED]. This light source has proven to be highly effective in providing a level of illumination that is necessary for the casual use, or for the light maintenance work, as contemplated during the development of the present invention. The low cost and minimum power usage, coupled with the relatively high level of light intensity of the LED, makes this selection ideal for the illumination required to meet my objectives.
Still other objectives and advantages of the present invention will become readily apparent to those skilled in this art from the following description wherein there is shown and described the two preferred embodiments of this invention, simply by way of illustration of the modes that are best suited to carry out the invention. As it will be realized, the invention is capable of still other different embodiments, and its several details are capable of modifications in various, obvious aspects all without departing from the invention. Accordingly, the drawings and descriptions will be regarded as illustrative in nature and not as restrictive.